Adding to Hudson Yards’ height superlatives, the city’s highest outdoor residential amenity space has opened at 15 Hudson Yards. Rising 900 feet in the air, “Skytop” features 6,000 square feet of curvy indoor-outdoor space, which follows the shape of the building’s crown. Designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro with interiors by Rockwell Group, the amenity space offers unobstructed views of the Hudson River and beyond. — 6sqft
Image by Scott Frances for Related-OxfordImage by Scott Frances for Related-Oxford View full entry
More than a decade since the swing toward open-plan offices — and the resulting backlash from workers concerned about noise and a lack of privacy — a host of ancillary spaces are cropping up in workplaces, offering employees an escape from their (sometimes overly loud) co-workers. These private spaces include prayer rooms, wellness rooms and libraries [...] All of which prompts the question: After pulling down the walls that defined yesterday’s workplaces, are we once again putting them up? — The New York Times
The Architecture Billings Index (ABI) continued to show signs of growth in the month of January, continuing a modest year-end rally into the first quarter of 2020. January ABI highlights Architecture Billings Index Score for January: 52.2Project inquiries index: 57.9 Design contracts... View full entry
The artist Thierry Guetta, aka Mr Brainwash, is temporarily turning the former Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills—designed by the architect Richard Meier in 1996—into his own museum. The French-born Los Angeles-based artist this week sealed a deal that will allow him to lease the building, which was bought by the luxury brand LVMH for $80m in 2018, until it and two other properties the company acquired on North Rodeo Drive are turned into a hotel. — The Art Newspaper
Previously, the building, rising three stories, functioned as an outpost of the Museum of Television & Radio and then to the Paley Center for Media, which left earlier this month, The Art Newspaper reports. Equipped with the required museum facilities, the structure provides a capable canvas... View full entry
The last of the 18 piers that will support the new Genoa bridge in Italy has been completed less than eight months after construction of the first foundations began. [...]
Ten of the sections of the deck that will rest on the piers have been installed so far; the current deck length of 550m is more than half of its eventual 1,067m length.
— Construction Index
43 people were killed and 14 more injured on August 14, 2018 when the nearly mile-long Morandi highway bridge in Genoa partially collapsed. Architect Renzo Piano, a Genoa native, was commissioned to design the 1,067-meter replacement bridge, and construction work started in June 2019. The... View full entry
Larry Tesler, who passed away on Monday, might not be a household name like Steve Jobs or Bill Gates, but his contributions to making computers and mobile devices easier to use are the highlight of a long career influencing modern computing.
...Tesler worked with Tim Mott to create a word processor called Gypsy that is best known for coining the terms “cut,” “copy,” and “paste” when it comes to commands for removing, duplicating, or repositioning chunks of text.
— Gizmodo
After graduating with a degree in computer science from Stanford University, Tesler began working with the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) in 1973 until 1980. PARC is most famously known for developing the graphical user interface we all use in computers today. From 1980 to 1997, Tesler... View full entry
Motivated to continue your professional growth with a new architecture job? Whether it's in marketing, project management, or BIM, start your search with the latest listings from last week's Employer of the Day featured firms! Based in Boulder, CO, Hampton Architecture is hiring an independent... View full entry
Archinect's Architecture School Lecture Guide for Winter/Spring 2020 A new school term means it's time for Archinect's latest edition of Get Lectured, an ongoing series where we feature a school's lecture series—and their snazzy posters—for the current term. Check back... View full entry
Antonio Pacheco wrote about the Austin Central Library, completed in 2017 and designed via a joint partnership between Lake | Flato and Shepley Bulfinch. monosierra also provided some on-the-ground reporting "Was just here this week. I think it does its job as a public library well - generous... View full entry
Last week the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced its investment of $74 million "for 63 projects to research, develop, and test energy-efficient and flexible building technologies, systems, and construction practices to improve the energy performance of our Nation's buildings and electric... View full entry
The Paris-born collector and billionaire Nicolas Berggruen says he is moving ahead with plans for his ambitious Berggruen Institute building, designed by the Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron, that will rise on a plot of land in the Santa Monica Mountains, close to the Getty Center. He says, however, that no date has been set for the ground-breaking of the new venue, which will act as a base for the institute. — The Art Newspaper
The Los Angeles-based Berggruen Institute first unveiled the master plan for its "Scholars' Campus," designed by Herzog & de Meuron in collaboration with Michel Desvigne Paysagiste and Inessa Hansch Architecte as well as executive architect Gensler, in August 2017. Image © Herzog & de... View full entry
As the United Kingdom works to strike new trade deals with Europe following Brexit, Greek authorities are using the occasion to try and negotiate a return of the country's long-lost Parthenon Marbles (also referred to as the Elgin Marbles). Reuters reports that Greek officials have included... View full entry
Four cranes are standing tall in Exposition Park, as the steel framework begins to take shape for the $1-billion Lucas Museum of Narrative Art. — Urbanize LA
Urbanize LA was able to peek over the construction fence at the future Lucas Museum of Narrative Art site in Los Angeles and catch some shots of the growing steel skeleton. Designed by Ma Yansong's MAD Architects, the $1-billion museum will be one of several high-profile sports and entertainment... View full entry
Six trustees, among them the prominent designer David Rockwell, have resigned from the board of the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum to protest the removal of the museum’s director, Caroline Baumann, following an investigation into issues including her 2018 wedding.
Ms. Baumann was forced to resign on Feb. 7 after an investigation by the Smithsonian’s inspector general into how Ms. Baumann procured her dress and the venue for the ceremony.
— The New York Times
In a resignation letter protesting the ouster of former Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum director Caroline Baumann for suspected improprieties involving her purchase of a bargain designer wedding dress, architect David Rockwell of Rockwell Group writes, "We all serve on the board because... View full entry
The New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) has struck a deal with five different private developers that will hand over the management and repair duties for seven public housing complexes to the selected companies in exchange for $1.5 billion in repairs. The deal will impact 5,908 housing units... View full entry
